Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Ephesians 6:5 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 5. 5Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Enslaved people are addressed inside an unjust ancient institution and told to direct even constrained service toward Christ.
This household word is not a charter for slavery as a modern institution.
This verse is one part of that explanation in Ephesians 6:5–9. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Ephesians 6:5–9
Read Ephesians 6:5–9 as a complete section. Verses 5–8 address enslaved people within a coercive institution; verse 9 addresses masters under the same impartial heavenly Master and explicitly ends threatening.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Paul applies Christ's lordship inside a slaveholding household by addressing enslaved believers as moral agents and confronting masters with a higher Master who shows no favoritism.
Read Ephesians 6:5–9 together
Why these verses belong together: Enslaved people and masters are addressed within one unequal institution under one impartial heavenly Master.
Verse 5. 5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
Verse 6. 6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;
Verse 7. 7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:
Verse 8. 8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.
Verse 9. 9 And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.
Follow the Context
- Enslaved believers are addressed directly within their constrained situation.
- Their service is redirected from eye-service and people-pleasing toward Christ.
- The Lord, not the slaveholder, is named as the final judge of good.
- Masters are commanded to act correspondingly and stop threatening.
- Masters and enslaved people share one heavenly Master who shows no partiality.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
Ephesians 6:5 does not declare slavery morally good or turn ancient enslavement into ordinary modern employment.
What Remains True
The verse addresses enslaved believers as moral agents under Christ within an unjust institution; it does not make that institution good.
How It Can Shape Life
- Never use this command to justify slavery, trafficking, forced labor, or employee exploitation; keep the ancient coercive setting visible.
Teach It Back
Explain Ephesians 6:5's specific contribution to Ephesians 6:5–9: Enslaved people are addressed inside an unjust ancient institution and told to direct even constrained service toward Christ. Include what the surrounding verses add and what the verse does not permit readers to conclude.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Ephesians 6:5–9 — Enslaved People and Masters Before One LordSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: The exact KJV wording and immediate English context for Ephesians 6:5–9.
Exact location: eBible/CrossWire eng-kjv2006 USFM, source files dated 2026-08-19, Ephesians 6; archive and normalized-corpus SHA-256 values are recorded in the library policy.
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: The critically edited Greek wording and sentence relationships used to check the passage.
Exact location: Faithlife SBLGNT repository, data/sblgnt/text/Eph.txt, Ephesians 6, verses within Ephesians 6:5–9.
Open the Ephesians Greek text file ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Ephesians with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Material translation choices, syntax notes, and textual variants checked for this passage.
Exact location: NET Bible, Ephesians 6, translator and textual notes attached to the verses in Ephesians 6:5–9.
Open NET Ephesians 6 ↗peer reviewed open access contextual study
Domestic workers in Nigerian Christian families: A socio-rhetorical reading of Ephesians 6:5–9
Olubiyi A. Adewale
HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 78.3, 2022
Supports: The ancient master-slave relation and the need to avoid silently recasting enslaved people as modern employees.
Exact location: Olubiyi A. Adewale, Domestic workers in Nigerian Christian families, sections on the Graeco-Roman household code and Ephesians 6:5–9.
Open source ↗